Reading Between the Lines of the Miami Dolphins

Thoughts on Darren Rizzi as Assistant Head coach

Thoughts on Darren Rizzi as Assistant Head coach

Well, it’s hard to write about the importance of Darren Rizzi being named as Assistant Head Coach, because no one really knows what an Assistant Head Coach does.

It’s hard to judge how much football a special teams coach has to know. Kickoff formations, punt formations, and some occasional fakes, and that’s about it. Although under Joe Philbin, we tried only two trick punts in 4 years, and both times, the offense was in an illegal formation. Those penalties were both declined, because both fakes failed. Gotta give Rizzi some blame there.

Darren Rizzi showed more passion in this one play than Joe Philbin showed in 4 years combined.

But one thing Dolfans noticed over the years was that Philbin and Rizzi talked constantly during games.

You rarely saw Philbin talking to the man in charge of his entire offense (Lazor), but you often saw Philbin talking to the guy in charge of the punter. Never understood that.

Tom Brady didn’t even know the name of New England’s special teams coach, but in Philbinland, such a low-level coach was consulted on offense.

The fact that Philbin relied on Rizzi tells us nothing. Philbin also relied on Mike Sherman and Dion Jordan. No one except Steve Ross trusted Philbin’s judgment. But now that Dan Campbell also sees something good in Rizzi, we may be onto something. Let’s hope he’s a good motivator and tactician. I almost said “good teacher,” and that comes from years of Philbin talking about how he likes to teach the players. Never once said he needs to toughen them up or bench under-performers or anything like that. Campbell said that on Day One, and let’s hope Rizzi agrees.

I am with you! I too am very excited to see the season start… er I mean re-start with the new coaching staff.

I am under no delusion though. I can’t think of a single interim coach that got their team deep in the post season. Maybe you guys can think of one but I can’t even think of one that got to the post season.

We don’t just have an interim HC we have half the coaching staff out of position….lol

Also the Bills won again so that puts them what 2 games ahead of us and of course were not even in the same universe with the Patriots so forget that conversation.

I guess what I really want to know is do we have any football players on this damm team other then Grimes, Landry, Matthews, Pouncy, Miller, Camron, Grimes wife, Lauran Tannehill and maybe a few others I left out.

I do agree with Jay on one thing

This year Tannehill has sucked of course I think Philbin wen’t all in with his community scheme and making everyone stick to the game plan that resembled nothing that would work in the NFL so now with the new coaching staff im not expecting miricals I just want to see guy given the ability to compete and we will then be able to see what we have.

If we can make a push down the stretch for the wild card it would be fun but Miami would have to go on a four game winning streak to make a shot even probable and I don’t see it.

But hey leave a tight end and a RB in to protect Tannehill and lets see if the kid can through the ball a little better with 5 seconds in the pocket.

That alone would be a really welcome change and I would be very happy with that next Sunday!

This is a must watch. Goes into details , makes excellent points about team attitude especially about Knowshon Mereno’s effect on the team with his inspired play vs the Pats. He’s onto something guys. Hope is still alive.

As bad as that last game and the season has been I think things could change. If we came out and got just one spark, a sack, a long run from one of our backs, a deep pass play, ( deep for Tanny = 20+ yrds ha ha ) something just something to get the team fired up and you never know. Things might change a little and we might even come close to winning a game or two.

Mike,
Even if we get a high draft pick, or even Number One overall, they will blow it on the likes of a Dion Jordan, Davante Parker, or some other guy who rides our bench and then quietly disappears after a few seasons.

I would really like to see Josh McDaniels coach Miami and I don’t think it’s ENTIRELY out of the realm of possibilities

BUT

I think it would take Ross giving him 100% control over everything in which case I think he fires everyone and rebuilds the team.

I personally think this is the absolute best outcome for Miami.

I am not big on hiring another cordinator or failed HC to be Miamis main guy (McDaniels is both of these) but in McDaniels case he brings a pedagree that is very hard to overlook.

He was a lowly persennel assistant when he was hired in 2001 by the Patriots and he worked his way up to OC and that wasn’t a glorified title that he was given. He earned it and still proves very capable in that capacity.

Also the hiring would obviously sting the Patriots at lest a little.

I think that Ross has been an owner long enough now to know his way isn’t working and my hope is that he will realize that in order to have a team that is spoken well of (I do think thats important to Ross) he has to drastically change what he is doing.

Hopefully that translates to him giving up 100% control because if he does we will have a shot at McDaniels who I think is the best option available and I do think he will be available next year if the terms are right.

While that is defiantly true (about Belicheat knowing his tendencies) Brady is 38 and while he shows no signs of aging now, he will especially if they win another SB this year and Brady has taken a lot more hits this year then he is used to.

It will take any new coach a year or two before they take the division and by then I think NE will have had a change of guard in connection with Brady and Bill.

Also keep this in mind. Belichech knows everyone’s tendencies! The man can flat out coach and cheat so I don’t so much care about that.

Jeebus Cripes I hope we don’t get o,e of the Shanahans. Especially Shanahan the elder.

I think we should find out which coach in Arizona is soaking up what Bruce Arians is teaching. That would be my pick.

Some want Gruden, or Cowher or some other skipper who’s been out of the game for the better part of a decade. I say no thanks. The NFL is a big boy league and you can’t skip out for that many years and expect your stuff to work.

The only old guy I’d go with is Marty Schottenheimer since all he does is get teams into the post season. That gleam!!

All said…. even though we have yet to play a game after PHLUSHING the coaching staff… I like what I’ve seen and heard from Campbell. I’ve so wanted a tough, bada$$, coach for the longest time. We should temper all the new HC talk for next year until we see what happens the rest of the season. Campbell talks straight, doesn’t get all mental & vague like Phailbin. This team needs tough love to get players to realize the mental/physical potential. I’m really not interested in a Gruden or a Schottenheimer or a Billick. Those guys did well in their day & I don’t want to invest another 4 years in guys who have couched it. Would you rather have a recycled Jimmy Johnson or a young guy with vision for the long haul?

Even though we are 1-3 when I thought we might have been 5-0, I think “we” made the best choice with what was available. Sometimes the best hires come from the inside. What was the Steelers HC before he was promoted? How about Mike McCarthy from the Packers?

All my hopes in what I’ve said will be meaningless unless Campbell turns things around NOW. A win this week will provide fuel…. beating the Patriots will be HUGE.

I think Nick Saban set the NFL record for assistant coaches, and then he lied and got out of Dodge, leaving dozens of assistant coaches in limbo. Ever since then, the Dolphins have had too many assistants.